Movies That Don't Cut it in Theaters Might Like TV

In 2003 I made my first film, Get Spielberg. Since then I've seen actors come and go, filmmakers come and go, film crew come and go. But my friend Noel Bastien, who worked as a PA on my film, has stood in his commitment to writing, directing and producing, and even though he's moved thousands of miles away, we still connect and inspire each other.

Recently I asked Noel to support my endeavor to turn my film project, A PERFECT WEAPON, into a TV series. Noel responded with an email that essentially summed up what I'd been feeling and doing in the TV realm for several years. I know that many turned to web series to make their mark, and I applaud them, but my eye has always been on TV as the primary market for aspiring filmmakers. With hundreds of new networks and stations surfacing every day. TV, to me, is the way to go.

Hi Angelo-

I received your email alert today and I wanted to just send you a note to say that I agree with you in that your premise sounds great as a TV series. My producing partner and I recently came to the same conclusion for [our project]. We looked at this way:

TV is now the premier way for people to get their entertainment (through proven binge watching on Netflix), The networks love it because it boosts the ratings for when shows come back on (see Breaking Bad), not to mention that it's free and that it's better for viewing on any device.A-List Actors have come back to TV because they love the meaty, character-driven roles that give them the opportunity to really dive in.

It's good for us as writers and producers because we can create and explore that character in depth and give a them time to develop over the course of several seasons-as opposed to a 2 hr movie.

In addition to that, think as an executive, which would your rather put money into? a movie which is only 2 hours of content? or a series which could be 10 hours of content (per season)?

Again for us a writers, directors, and producers, a continually running TV series keeps us employed a lot longer (for years-as opposed to a few months for a movie).

When we finally came to this realization of creating a TV series from our work on the script, it gave us a renewed excitement for the project knowing that we could put in all the backstory and stuff that we have talked about, but wouldn't be able to include in a 110 page script. Just a couple thoughts I wanted to share with you, some of which may have crossed your mind as you were thinking of making your idea into a show. I wish you the best and I hope it happens for you.

Keep in touch my friend.

Thanks Noel. In two weeks I pitch my project to USA Network and now to NBC Drama also.

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I am a veteran screenwriter, independent filmmaker and blogger. I have championed the cause of the independent filmmaker with how-to articles, guest appearances on Internet radio talk shows and quotes for major industry trade magazine for a dozen years. My films have been seen in the US, UK, Italy, Spain, Belgium, and the UAE.